Back to Brookland
by weepingingangelbaby
Summary: Alex makes a trip to his old school to make a pick up. One-shot


**Disclaimer: I play in another's sandbox, I do not own the teenage spy Alex Rider. Not that I would mind too.**

25-year-old Alex Rider smiled his mega-watt, girl-gravitating smile, before opening the door to the old building and walking into the school.

Brookland Comprehensive.

He kept his grin in place as he walked to school secretary's desk. "Hello," he said letting the smooth sound of his deep voice fill the small area. The woman looked up. Ms. Bedfordshire. She still worked there.

"Hello," she replied, "May I help you with something?"

"Yes, actually I need to pick up Ms. Hailey McDougall. Her father is in the hospital."

"Oh, I'm so sorry. I hope he is okay. Her father's in the army, yes?"

"Yeah, we work together."

" OK, I just need to make sure you are on the pick up list, your name is?" Ms. Bedfordshire looked down and began typing away at her computer.

"Alex. Alex Rider." Ms. Bedfordshire's eyes widened before looking up at the man before her.

"Alex?"

"Hello, Ms. Bedfordshire."

"It's actually Mrs. Tyler now. I married almost five years ago. But Alex?"

"The one and only. At least I believe so."

"You've, ahh grown." That was one way of saying it. She may have been getting on in years (she wasn't old, of course, she was only 36), but the man in front of her was undeniably handsome. About 6 foot 2, light blonde hair, and tanned, muscled features. If Alex Rider was sickly, or a druggie as the rumors had been, then she was Queen of England. "Not getting sick anymore, are you?"

"No actually, they managed to find a cure and boost my immune system," Alex said smiling, remembering that the kind secretary had been one of the only people to believe that something else was going on besides the sickness, and/or druggie stories.

"That's good. Very good. I thought you had moved to America?"

"I had. Let's just say it didn't work out." That was an understatement. After the fifth assassination attempt, and Alex's discovery and consequent destruction of his third drug smuggling ring in three months, it was decided Alex was just safer staying a spy, however ironic or counter intuitive that may have seemed. Alex had agreed, and he was back in England and on a mission by the next week.

"Ahhh," she replied, not quite sure how else to respond. She looked back down at her computer. "You are on the approved pick up list." She began writing a pass for the McDougall girl. "So, a military man, huh?" Ms. Bedfor... Mrs. Tyler asked. Alex tilted his head to the side in a questioning manner, "You said you work with Hailey's father?"

"Yeah, for quite a while now actually." Mrs. Tyler looked around behind her after she finished writing the pass. _For the last 11 years now._

"Normally I wouldn't have asked this of someone, but you know the school, and Jessica the girl who usually helps with this stuff is out sick today, but do you think you can maybe go get Ms. McDougall from her class room?"

"Of course," Alex replied, grin wide on his face. "I would actually love to see how the school has changed in the past 10 years. Where is Hailey's class?"

"She's in the science building. Room 216." Alex grimaced inwardly at this. Remembering his fight with his clone in the old science building, and in turn reminding him of the late Jack Starbright.

"I remember where it is," he said, smile still firmly in place on the outside.

"Okay, here is her pass," she said handing him the yellow slip of paper, "Just head onto the science building. Make sure not to get into any trouble on the way."

"Don't worry Mrs. Tyler, I won't burn down the science building, again," he said winking, confirming the rumor from long ago about his involvement from said incident. Mrs. Tyler just smiled, Alex Rider sure was a mystery, even now in his adult hood. One she pretty sure no one would actually ever solve.

Alex turned and strolled away, his movements very dancer-like, or rather assassin-like. As he walked through the hallway of his old school, he looked at the different class rooms, and the classes and the teachers within. He recognized some of the teachers, others not so much. When he finally made his way to room 216 of the science wing of the school, Alex paused, steeled himself, and then pushed the door open. Seeing an old teacher couldn't be any harder than saving Russia, and he'd done that before. Could it?

Hailey McDougall sat in the middle of her science class, idly spinning her pen through her fingers, not really paying much attention. Yes, yes, she knew it was irresponsible, but Mr. Bagman was just so boring, and she was normally a very studious girl. But today she just couldn't bring herself to pay any attention what so ever.. She glanced up at the clock.

12:40

Only two and a half hours left of the government mandated torture. Hailey found herself thinking that she would give anything just to liven the class up a bit. Her wish was granted a few minutes later when the door opened to reveal her Uncle Cub.

"Uncle Cub!" she yelled, standing up. Though to many he looked perfectly relaxed, she saw the slight tensing of his shoulders, and the nervous twitch of his index finger on his right hand.

Something was wrong.

Her father had long ago to recognize some of her uncle's warning signs, because he never one to tell you directly. The training had come in handy on more than one occasion.

"Miss McDougall!" Mr. Bagman said in a voice only slightly above his usually droning tone, "Sit down and cease your yelling."

Hailey sat.

"Actually," her uncle began, "I came to pick Miss McDougall up, so she will be needing to stand again."

"And you are?"

"Alex, Alex Rider, sir. I'm a colleague of Hailey's father," Alex said.

"My uncle," Hailey said at the same time.

Both were true. Well in an unconventional sort of way. Hailey's father, Daniel McDougall, or Snake as Alex called him, was a colleague of her father, though, technically, Alex was more of a boss considering his higher ranking. Hailey and Alex had been introduced when Hailey was 8 and Alex was 19.

To Alex's and the rest of the units immense surprise, Hailey had immediately taken to Alex, and had adopted the name Uncle Cub for him, a spin off on his old SAS code name. Despite the rather substantial age difference, the two of them got on very well, and had become quite the team of pranksters and all things mischievous. Much to the rest of the unit's major chagrin and the pair's immense delight.

Hailey had an idea of what Alex did, but it was not much more than that. An idea. Her dad always said that his job was dangerous. And she knew that much was true, due to the amount of times her Uncle Cub had stumbled through the door, bleeding all over the recently cleaned carpet (from the last time he had come in bleeding) to be fixed up by her father, then crash on their couch.

She knew that he was good at his job from how people at her father's military get togethers reacted to when his name was said. He seemed to be some sort of legend.

And she was fine with that. Alex Rider was her mysterious, dangerous, funny, awesome, legendary uncle, and she wouldn't have it another way. And Hailey was pretty sure she knew him well enough.

Of course until Mr. Bagman's reaction to his name.

"ALEX RIDER?!" he practically shouted, which that in itself was shock. Mr. Bagman never, repeat never, raised his voice above persistent drone.

Alex, of course, in his ever so suave fashion, just smiled, "Mr. Bagman."

"Alex Rider," Mr. Bagman said again, "Like the Alex Rider from 10 years ago?"

"Is there another Alex Rider I should know about, because that is the second time the validity of my identity has been questioned today?"

"Out," Mr. Bagman said suddenly.

"What?" Alex and Hailey said at the same time.

"Get out. I do not want you in my classroom, the science wing, or in this school."

"Mr. Bagman!" Hailey gasped.

"But I have to get Hailey," Alex continued, "Her dad's in the hospital."

"What?!" Hailey said again.

Alex turned to her, "He's going to be fine, just a pesky little bullet wound to the shoulder."

The whole classroom, save Alex and Hailey, gasped. How could someone talk about something as serious as a bullet wound so callously?

"The why are you coming to get me? If he is going to be fine, I mean?"

"I wanted someone to go to get ice cream with, and this seemed as good as an excuse as any..."

"Out!" Mr. Bagman said again, this time pointing at the door. "I will not have you in here corrupting my students, Alex Rider. Get out of my classroom and don't ever come back."

"I have to get..."

"Take her with you, just leave." Alex just shrugged.

"Okay. C'mon Hailey." Alex turned and walked out the door.

Everyone stared as Hailey quickly packed up her belongings, and headed out of the classroom to the mysterious intruder outside, who had managed to get a rise out of Mr. Bagman.

"See you tomorrow," a few of her friends called, the ones who were brave enough to speak.

"Yeah, bye guys," and she too headed out the door. Her uncle was leaning up against the wall, were he pushed off when Hailey came in.

"K, let's go."

The two walked through the halls of Brookland Comprehensive for a while before Hailey decided to speak up. "Soooo, why does Mr. Bagman hate you? On second thought, how does he even know you?"

"I blew up his classroom when I attended school here. The whole science wing really." He said this as if it was no big deal, a commonality in the life of Alex Rider (which thinking about it, it probably was), even as Hailey stopped still in her tracks.

He what? She didn't even know he had attended Brookland Comprehensive?

You know what? She didn't even want to know.

Hailey ran to catch up with her fast moving, mystery of an Uncle. "So, where we getting ice cream?"

Alex just smiled.


End file.
